Sodexo has had its catering, retail and soft services FM contract at Queen’s Hospital, Romford extended for a further five years. Sodexo will implement new portering and cleaning technology as part of the contract extension.
Sodexo has delivered the soft FM services at the hospital since 2006 as part of the PFI contract with ProjectCo and Barking, Havering and Redbridge University Hospitals NHS Trust.
The £140m contract extension builds on Sodexo’s strong partnership with ProjectCo and the Trust and creates a sound base for further investment and development of both clinical services and infrastructure enhancements.
Protecta, an evidence-based infection prevention approach, has been launched at the hospital to promote and support the adoption of best practices in cleaning and decontamination in the hospital, helping them to fight against healthcare acquired infections (HCAIs) and meet the National Standards of Healthcare Cleanliness.
New portering technology will be implemented by Sodexo which will improve patient flow, particularly within the Emergency department.
To improve sustainability and support the Trust with its Net Zero targets Sodexo deployed its WasteWatch programme in 2021 which has to date reduced food waste by 64% (4,701kg), saving the equivalent of 8,637 meals and preventing 33 metric tonnes of CO2 output.
Top drive towards Net Zero, Sodexo has changed their waste partner, who are able to provide a local processing service, which has significantly reduce transport mileage and therefore significantly reduce CO2 emissions.
The Sodexo team successfully delivered a number of emergency projects through the pandemic to improve the critical provision, which included upgrading the VIE oxygen system to make Queen’s Hospital one of the most resilient hospitals using piped oxygen in the country, installing a completely new, state-of-the-art ITU ward, and converting an area of the Emergency Department into a new welfare space for doctors, nurses, and support staff to help support their wellbeing through rapidly changing circumstances.
These projects were delivered during the pandemic whilst maintaining infection prevention compliance and ensuring staff and patient safety levels. Sodexo will also be delivering a number of other significant and business critical projects over the coming years.
Philip Leigh, CEO Sodexo Healthcare, UK & Ireland, said, “We are delighted to extend our contract at Queen’s Hospital, Romford. We will continue to work closely with the Trust to improve patient flow and support its objective to support early discharge from hospital.
'Patient experience is at the heart of what we do and we look forward to working with the Trust in the delivery of a number of significant projects planned over the coming years.”
The Sodexo team at Queen’s Hospital have received a number of industry awards including highly commended in the healthcare project of the year category at the Partnership Awards 2021, the AHCP 2021 domestic team of the year and patient dining manager Karen Ford-Sneddon receiving the healthcare catering award at the Contract Catering Awards 2022.